Improvement in horse-tooth files



UNITED STATES- PATENT OFFICE.

J. P. HOWELL, OF WASHINGTONVILLE, NEW YORK.

IMPROVEMENT IN HORSE-TOOTH FILES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 38,391, dated May 5, 1863 antedated February 21, 1863.

To a/ZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, J. P. HOWELL, of Washingtonville, in the county of Orange and State of New York, have invented a new and Improved File for Filing Horses Teeth; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to theaecompan yin gdraw ings, making a part of this specification, in which- Figure l is a side sectional view of my in vention, taken in the line m w, Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a face view of the same; Fig. 3, a transverse section of the saine, taken in the line a," w', Fig. l.

Similar letters of' reference indicate correspondin g parts in the several figures.

This invention consists in having the ile and stock made separately, and the file fitted in the stock in such a manner that it may be adjusted and secured therein and removed therefrom with the greatest facility, and a far more economical implement obtained for the purpose than those hitherto used.

The ordinary horse-tooth file is composed of a le and stock or handle made or forged out of one piece of metal, involving considerable expense in the construction, and possessing the disadvantage of becoming wholly worthless when the le portion is worn smooth by use.

To enable those skilled in the art to fully understand and construct my invention, Iwill proceed to describe it. l

A representsv the stock or handle of the implement, which is made of malleable castiron and of the usual form, one portion, a, which is grasped by the hand ofthe operator, being slightly curved, as shown in Fig. 1, the other portion, b, being' shorter than a., perectl y Hat and straight, and vprovided with lips c-one at each edge or sideof hook form, and projecting down so as to form grooves or guides to receive the le B, as shown clearly in Fig. 3.

The le B is constructed of a at steel plate cut at both sides, and of such a width as to fit snugly between the lips c c, and is secured therein7 so as to prevent casual movement, by means of a set-screw, d, which passes through the inner part of the dat portion b of the stock or handle, and passes against the tile, as shown in Fig. l.

The lips c c perform two functions, one as a means to secure the file to the stock, and

the other as guides to the implement while in use.

The teeth of the horse wear obliquely, as indicated in red outline, Fig. 3, owing to the lateral grinding motion which is given the lower jaw in masticating their food; and when a horse becomes aged the Obliquity of the grinding-surfaces of the teeth becomes so great as to seriously interfere with the proper mastication of the food', hence the necessity for filing the teeth.

The application ot' the implement is shown in Fig. 3, the tile being rubbed over the face or grinding-surfaces oi' the teeth, and the lips c o serving as guides in consequence of projectin g over the edges of the teeth.

rlhel form or shape of my invention is the same as that of the ordinary kind, and is used in precisely the same way; but as the latter is constructed or forged out of a single piece of metal, (steel,) it will be seen that the material alone will be more expensive than that used in my invention, as the tile in the latter is all that requires to be of steel, the stock or handle being of malleable cast-iron.

The ordinary horse-tooth le is also attended with considerable expense in the construe` tion. The forming of the lips c requires considerable time, and these lips prevent the file portion from being properly cut in consequence of the former projecting down beyond the face of the latter, and when the tile is worn smooth the implement is useless.

In my invention, when one side of the le is worn smooth it may be removed from the stock or handle and reversed, so that the other side may be used; and when both sides are worn smooth a new le may be adjusted in the stock or handle, the latter lasting indeiinitely. In my invention, also, the file, in consequence of being made separately from the stock or handle, may be properly cut and with the greatest facility, equally so as the ordinary files in use.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

y A horse-tooth tile composed of a cast-metal stock or handle, A, and a file, B, made separately and tted together, substantially as herein shown and described.

J; I?. HOWELL.

Witnesses:

W. B. UHACE, W. W. FANNING. 

